Stardust (2007)

Every now and then a movie comes along that tends to give the marketing department some difficulty. Stardust is one of those film which not only was difficult to market, but also has an interesting history. Based upon the novel written by Neil Gaiman, Stardust was first conceived as a “story with pictures” and published as four part comic book series with illustrator Charles Vess. Gaiman was later convinced to release a novel version without the illustrations. Described as an adult fairytale, Stardust tells the story of young man named Tristan Thorn who lives in an English town called Wall. Wall is named after a nearby old stone wall that unbeknown to the general populace divides our world from the a magic filled world of Faerie. Seeking to win the heart of the town beauty,Victoria, Tristan vows to cross over the wall to find and return a fallen star in exchange for her hand in marriage. Tristan discovers that the star is really a woman named Yvaine and soon finds himself on a quest that will cross paths with evil witches, sky pirates, and feuding princes.

The movie differs slighty from the novel in several ways. The tone was changed from being dark natured with more sex and violence to one that is more whimsical and humorous. The director, Matthew Vaughn, stated that his vision for the film was “to do Princess Bride with a Midnight Run overtone.” Gaiman approved of the changes stating that he would rather people see a good interpretation of the story instead of a failed attempt at being loyal to the book. Being a large fan of Neil Gaiman, I absolutely adored Stardust. It is a fun movie with plenty of heart and an underlying message that love is not something that one should have to earn. On a side note, if you are a fan of Ricky Gervais, there is a wonderful little scene that pays homage to his Extras persona. If you are in the mood for something that is a little more light-hearted with plenty of beautiful locales and enjoyable characters, than give Stardust a chance to shine.